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Highlighted Aspects for This Week

Monday: Uranus conjunct Sun, Ceres enters Pisces

Thursday: Neptune sesquisquare Saturn

Friday: Jupiter semisquare Venus

Saturday: Saturn sesquisquare Venus, Neptune conjunct Venus, Venus enters Pisces
 
BLESSED NEW YEAR! By the time many of you read today's Journal, the Sun will have moved into Aries, marking the beginning of the astrological New Year (exact ingress at 4:21pm PDT).
 
Of course, we cross this threshhold every year at this time -- but this year, the event is made more powerful because Uranus, the Great Liberator and Manifester of Change, has also just stepped into Aries. This means that the Sun and Uranus will join forces for the first two days of our new zodiac year, stamping their combined energetic imprint not only on this week, but also on the next 12 months.
 
WE HAVE ALREADY been working with the influence of Uranus in Aries for a little more than week. Before that, Jupiter's ingress into Aries (on January 22) started setting the stage for the revolutions and evolutions that are now occurring.
 
"Freedom" and "rebellion" are keywords that are always associated with Uranus. Positive keywords for Aries include "confident," "courageous" and "energetic"; whereas in the negative, we have "combative," "impatient" and "aggressive."
 
We do not have to look any further than current news headlines to see how this influence is manifesting globally. Revolutions seem to be bordering on the contagious as in nation after nation, people gain the courage to stand up for their individual freedoms.
 
EARTH CHANGES seem to be a part of the scenario as well. It is hard to ignore the synchronicity of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, occurring within hours of Uranus' entry into Aries.
 
It may also be hard not to fall prey to the fears that all these events have stirred. It is essential that we each find those sources of light and resources of positive perspective to support us each staying in balance, beyond the pull of completely-understandable and perhaps, on the human level, "natural" negative emotions.
 
One way to do that is to stay focused on heart energy, and on the compassion we feel for those intimately involved with the intensity of current changes. Although it seems absurd and unfeeling to call any crisis a "gift," the heart opening that we allow in response to others' pain is one of the positive developments that can occur following events such as those our planet has recently experienced.
 
OTHER THAN the Uranus-Sun alignment on Monday, the planetary aspects for the rest of week are mostly of the less dramatic variety. There does seem to be a focus on relationships toward the end of the week, as Saturn, Neptune and Venus interact and try to find agreement.
 
The Neptune-Saturn sesquisquare aspect on Thursday is continuing the ongoing dissolution of relationships and relationship issues that began with the first sesquisquare on October 27, 2010. This cycle will complete later this year, with the third of these aspects occurring on August 24, 2011.
 
Saturn requires us to face reality; Neptune encourages us to live the ideal. These two planets, when interacting, can bring us face-to-face with our illusions, but also help us manifest our dreams. The sesquisquare indicates a bit of a reality check is in store, as we decide what we want to take forward with us, and what needs to be left behind.
 
WITH SATURN in partnership-oriented Libra, and Venus in alignment with Neptune at the end of the week, this reality check is likely to focus in on relationship themes. Since sesquisquare aspects can indicate uncertainty or confusion, we may find ourselves acting out or receiving some displaced anger and resentment, as we all come to terms with what we have created to this point.
 
The Venus-Neptune conjunction will help us remain more calm than we might otherwise be, especially if we use that heart opening that we've been learning through our compassion for others. This may actually be the challenge of this Saturn-Neptune aspect, to see how we bring the ideal of compassion and understanding into the much more subjective realms of personal relationships.

About the Author

Pam Younghans lives in a log cabin outside of Seattle, Washington with her two dogs. She has been interpreting charts professionally for over 25 years. If you are interested in an astrology reading, e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. , or call 425-445-3775. For more information, please visit http://www.northpointastrology.com   

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